New to GIFT City? Start with What is GIFT City?
The full GIFT City menu now starts at $500. This post walks through every product an NRI can buy in the zone. They include dollar savings accounts and fixed deposits, the $500 retail funds, $75,000 managed portfolios and $150,000 restricted schemes.
Part 1 of this series established what GIFT City is. It is a dollar-denominated financial zone on Indian soil, offshore for currency purposes and onshore for tax purposes. It was built for institutions and only recently opened to individuals. Here we put the GIFT City rate sheet in context, starting with the full product menu.
The menu, from $0 to $250,000
The product lineup is shorter than marketing claims and mostly familiar. It starts with a basic dollar savings account, which serves as the foundational transaction hub. Next come fixed deposits lasting 7 days to 39 months, with tax-free and TDS-exempt interest. (TDS is tax deducted at source, the tax an Indian bank withholds before it pays you.) Retail mutual funds start at $500.
The two exchanges in the zone, India INX and NSE IX, run for 22 hours a day and list foreign equities, ETFs, dollar bonds and US depositary receipts. You trade on them through brokers registered with the IFSCA, the zone's regulator. Bond minimums are near $1,000.
Above these retail entry points are the legacy high-minimum products that predate the zone's retail opening. Portfolio management services and structured products require $75,000. Alternative investment funds require $150,000 or accredited status. Venture capital schemes require $250,000.
Dollar-denominated life insurance policies and ULIPs (unit-linked insurance plans) are based on ongoing premiums rather than lump-sum minimums. They will be covered separately in a future issue.
| Product | Minimum | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Global savings account | None at most banks | Dollar transaction account; the account through which other products settle |
| Listed equities and ETFs (India INX, NSE IX) | Brokerage account; no set minimum | Foreign-currency trading via IFSCA-registered brokers, including US stock depositary receipts; exchanges run 22 hours |
| USD fixed deposit | $500–$1,100 by bank | Tenors 7 days to 39 months; interest exempt from Indian tax, no TDS |
| Retail mutual fund | $500 | Category opened Sept 2025; named funds and US-eligibility caveat below |
| Dollar bonds and notes | Varies by issue; from ~$1,000 | Corporate and government-backed issues on the IFSC exchanges, including masala and green bonds |
| Portfolio management (PMS) | $75,000 | Managed accounts run from the zone |
| Structured products | $75,000 | Distributor-sold notes with defined payoff formulas |
| Restricted schemes (AIFs) | $150,000 or accredited | The pre-retail mainstay; pooled alternative funds |
| Venture capital schemes | $250,000 | Early-stage vehicles |
| Dollar life insurance / ULIPs | Premium-based | Policies written in USD by the zone's insurance offices |
Regulatory minimums for fund categories per IFSCA scheme rules. Deposit minimums vary by bank and bond minimums vary by issue, so confirm current figures against your bank's rate sheet and the offer document. Bond and structured-product minimums per distributor listings. As of August 2026.
Why the leveraged FCNR offer pays more than a regular deposit
One product from Part 1 is worth mentioning for comparison. The popular leveraged FCNR accounts opened in GIFT City in the summer of 2026 are different from standard options. They rely on a special loan and a currency-exchange program subsidized by the Reserve Bank of India. (FCNR is the foreign-currency fixed deposit Indian banks offer to NRIs. Our guide to choosing between NRE, NRO and FCNR covers the standard version.)
Regular GIFT City dollar deposits pay noticeably lower interest rates than these heavily advertised FCNR options. The yield gap exists because the central bank's subsidy is present in one product and absent in the other. An investment that depends on a central bank program to achieve its high return is a different product from one that does not.
The retail funds, by name
As of August 2026 there were two retail inbound funds in this category. An inbound fund takes dollars in the zone and invests them in India.
The first is the Tata India Dynamic Equity Fund, an inbound feeder launched in September 2025. It has a $500 minimum, zero entry or exit loads on direct plans, and a 1.75% expense ratio. It moves dollars from a GIFT City trust into domestic Indian equities.
The second is Sundaram's India Mid Cap GIFT, whose minimum varies between $500 and $5,000 depending on the distributor.
The rest of the 11 registered retail schemes are mostly outbound funds focused on global, US, or Chinese equities. US residents can easily buy those at home. Edelweiss explicitly blocks North American investors.
Multiple mid-2026 distributor disclosures and AMFI-registered guidance also indicate that these retail inbound funds generally do not accept US and Canada residents due to FATCA compliance. (FATCA is the US law that makes foreign financial firms report their American customers.) Mainland Indian mutual funds locked out US-resident NRIs the same way years ago.
Some distributor information conflicts, and the IFSCA advises US residents to evaluate their worldwide tax position before investing. Even so, the weight of evidence suggests the $500 retail gateway is largely closed to US investors. Get written confirmation directly from the fund house before wiring funds.
Any retail fund that does accept US investors will still face the complex US tax treatment for foreign pooled funds. We cover that in the post on what "tax-free" means on a US return.
| Fund | Minimum | What it is | US-resident access |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tata India Dynamic Equity Fund | $500 | Inbound feeder into Indian equity funds and ETFs | Reported excluded (FATCA) |
| Sundaram India Mid Cap GIFT | $500–$5,000 (sources conflict) | Inbound mid-cap equity | Reported excluded (FATCA) |
| Outbound retail funds (DSP, PPFAS, Edelweiss) | $500–$5,000 | Global equity feeders: S&P 500, Nasdaq 100, global, Greater China | No advantage for US filers |
Retail schemes registered with the IFSCA as of August 2026. US and Canada eligibility as reported by distributor disclosures in mid-2026. Disclosures conflict and eligibility is set fund by fund, so confirm directly with the fund house in writing before investing. The Edelweiss outbound fund excludes US and Canada residents. The remaining outbound funds hold exposures a US investor can buy directly through a domestic brokerage account.
What the menu leaves for a US resident
Read the two tables together and the list of products a US resident can use at the retail end gets short.
- The savings account has no minimum at most banks and is the account through which every other product settles.
- The dollar fixed deposit opens at $500 to $1,100 depending on the bank, for 7 days to 39 months.
- The two inbound retail funds are reported to exclude US and Canada residents, so treat them as closed until the fund house tells you otherwise in writing.
- The outbound retail funds hold US and global shares you can already buy through a US brokerage account.
- Everything else starts at $75,000 or more, or is priced by premium.
For most readers in the US, that leaves the savings account and the fixed deposit as the products to weigh first. The deposit needs two more checks before you fund it. The first is how the account opens and what protects the money once it is there, covered in opening a GIFT City account from the US. The second is what the interest is worth after US tax.
Playbook Move: Before comparing rates, match the product to its purpose. If your goal is to park dollars for future use in India, the correct benchmark for a GIFT City fixed deposit is the US Treasury or CD yield you are giving up, since both are in dollars. Your NRE rate is the wrong comparison. Calculate this spread using your bank's rate sheet. The GIFT City return has to beat your risk-free US alternative by a wide enough margin to make up for the lack of deposit insurance and a developing regulatory environment. If it does not, the product does not make sense for you, regardless of what the marketing brochure claims.
From Edition 11 of the NRI Playbook newsletter. For informational purposes only; not financial, tax, or legal advice. For decisions about your specific situation, consult a qualified cross-border tax professional.